Colombian filmmaker Simón Mesa Soto’s second feature has taken this year’s top prize.
Simón Mesa Soto’s A Poet is the big winner at this year’s Melbourne International Film Festival. MIFF has named the Colombian film as the recipient of their flagship $140,000 Bright Horizons Award, capping off a stellar 2025 festival.
This year’s Bright Horizons Jury was headed by filmmaker Charlotte Wells (Aftersun, MIFF 2022); with Australian actress, writer and performer Tamala; American filmmaker Alex Ross Perry (Pavements; Videoheaven, MIFF 2025); Greek filmmaker Athina Rachel Tsangari (Harvest, MIFF 2025); IMDb founder and Executive Chairman Col Needham; Vietnamese-Australian screenwriter Nam Le; and Australian composer and musician, Caitlin Yeo.
In a joint statement, the Jury said, “A tragicomic satire and microcosm of melancholy and irreverence, A Poet depicts Óscar, a failed poet turned reluctant mentor drifting between aspiration and self-destruction. The film is a biting fable of art as both an inescapable burden and a personal compass, breaking convention through its refreshingly brisk pace, unpretentious use of 16 mm cinematography, deadpan performances by a mostly first-timer cast, and pared-back jazzy score. The film’s balancing act of unflinching character study and social satire marks Simón Mesa Soto as a vital voice in contemporary Latin American cinema.”
Inaugurated at MIFF 2022, Bright Horizons highlights new and exciting voices in film. First awarded to the stunning Afrofuturist Neptune Frost, the award subsequently went to Senegalese-French romance Banel & Adama in 2023, and the absurdist Canadian dramedy Universal Language in 2024.
2025 MIFF Award Winners, Presented By Penfolds
Bright Horizons Award supported by VicScreen
A Poet directed by Simón Mesa Soto
Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award
James J. Robinson, First Light
The Uncle Jack Charles Award in collaboration with Kearney Group
Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, The Fix-It-Man and the Fix-It-Wooman, short film – art direction
Intrepid Audience Award
Careless directed by Sue Thomson
MIFF Schools Youth Jury Award presented by Collarts
Greetings From Mars directed by Sarah Winkenstette
Reflecting on this year’s festival, MIFF Artistic Director Al Cossar observed, “It’s been incredible to see Melbourne come alive with film over the past couple of weeks. MIFF is always an emphatic celebration of cinema across the city, and this year felt extra special – the hum of sold out theatres, excited audiences, and immense appreciation for so many extraordinary filmmakers attending from around the world has made the 2025 Melbourne International Film Festival one of our all-time seasons. And there’s still time to be a part of it, too!”
While this year’s MIFF is technically over, select films are available digitally on the ACMI Cinema 3 platform until August 31.
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